The football team won their third game in a row on Saturday against Holy Cross by a score of 20-17. After a 19-0 shutout against Georgetown University last weekend, the team continued their winning streak with the reliance of a strong second half offense. The first half started off with Holy Cross up 17-13, but the Raiders pulled through in the 4th quarter, leading to their three-point victory. The team is now at a 3-2 overall and 2-0 in the

Patriot League.

“Defensively, we started off slow and allowed Holy Cross to get 10 early points. Offensively, we moved the ball pretty well and began to make plays as the game progressed,” first-year fullback Brandon Henry said of the team’s performance. “Both the offense and defense began to make plays in the second half, which allowed us to secure the win.” The Raiders now lead an average of 20.2 points scored per game, around three points more than the 17.4 average of

their opponents this season. 

Sophomore quarterback Jake Melville threw his first two touchdowns of the season to senior tight end C.J. Stempeck and first-year wide receiver Alex Greenawalt. Melville also leads the Patriot League and is second nationally with an average of 8.9 yards per rushing attempt. 

Senior defensive back Mike Armiento’s interception in the fourth quarter helped give the ball back to the offense to seal the game. It was Armiento’s first of the season and the lucky 13th of his Colgate career. The safety is now tied for third on the all-time Colgate chart. Last season, Armiento had six interceptions to tie for the fourth-most in

school history. 

“It’s all about preparation. That’s what we were looking for in the red zone, and it’s all about understanding what they were going to do,” Armiento said.

“That’s Colgate; that’s what we do. The minute we got the ball, the players knew it. They kept saying, ‘This is it. They’re not getting the ball back. We’re going to drive it home.’ Boy, they did it,” Head Coach Dan Hunt said on the team’s ability to close out the ballgame.

The team looks forward to practice during this coming week where they will be able to concentrate on offensive strategies for their upcoming games, in particular this Saturday against

Princeton University.

“Princeton runs some sort of soft offense where they have a lot of different people calling the shots and running plays,” first-year defensive lineman Connor Buck said of the strategies the

defense will face this coming weekend. 

The Raiders kick off at Andy Kerr Stadium on Saturday, October 11, at 1 p.m. as they take on

Princeton University.